Performers

Opera: the most complete art form, and (most of the time) a stunning blend of music, stagecraft, lighting and passion – but what happens when it all goes wrong? Ask any singer and they will have a hundred stories of errors and accidents onstage, most of which go unnoticed by the audience. There are, however, always one or two that simply can’t be explained away!

Tenor Alex Haigh will explore just what happens when the worst occurs in this morning’s lecture, covering the humble cracked voice, destruction of sets by enraged singers and even inebriated musicians playing the wrong opera in the second act! More than any other art form, opera walks the fine line between triumph and disaster, and it is this balancing act that we are drawn to; after all, at this highest point of tension is where some of opera’s greatest successes are found, and without the knowledge that it could all fall apart at any moment, where would the excitement be? Come join Alex on a romp through some of the lowest moments in opera’s history, safe in the knowledge that even when the scenery collapses, the diva is ill and the maestro is asleep, the music ultimately wins the day!

Join us for a morning with Sarah Crabtree, Senior Producer for the Royal Opera, where she leads the producing team for the Linbury Theatre. Before joining the ROH, Sarah was one of the driving forces...

Jenny Miller, singer, director and founder of Barefoot Opera, returns to Opera Prelude to demonstrate the close relationship between instinct, emotional responses, everyday communication and the art...

Stuart Skelton is one of the finest heldentenors on the stage today, critically acclaimed for his outstanding musicianship, tonal beauty, and intensely dramatic portrayals. His repertoire encompasses...

In this talk, Ed Ballard (baritone) explores the early history of opera in London. How did this continental invention first arrive? Who were the singers who performed it, where and for whom? Who was...

In this morning's lecture we will have a look at the operatic creation in Portugal and Spain through the ages. Starting one of Europe's superstar composers in the 18th century - Marcos Portugal - we...

Acclaimed tenor Ben Johnson represented England in BBC Cardiff Singer of the World 2013 and won the Audience Prize. A former BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist and 2008 winner of the Kathleen Ferrier...